Top Chef Masters 2 Ep. #5 - 05/05/10 (Spoilers)

[LindaWhit]

OK, so we're at the first round of finals. The big question is will only one be eliminated? Or are they going to speed this up and eliminate two? I can't recall how many episodes that TCM1 was...I think there was at least 8 episodes? But there were more Masters in TCM2, so perhaps that extends this season a bit. Ahhh, Kelly just said - lowest score is out. So it's one by one until the final Top 3.

OK, on to tonight's show! The top 8 chefs who made it into the semi-finals will participate in a Tag Team relay race type of Quickfire challenge. IIRC, this will be 2 teams of 4 chefs. Each team has to prepare a dish off the cuff while the rest of your teammates have NO idea what the first chef is doing. Each team member only knows what's cooking when it's their turn to cook, as while they wait, they're blindfolded (and Rick Moonen was judge during the TC episode) and they step up to the stove for their part of the relay. What the original chef thought about making usually isn't what the final dish ends up being! (I loved this challenge during the TC season it was in.)

Team Blue - Susan, Jody, Rick, and Jonathan
Team Red - Tony, Carmen, Susur, and Marcus

And Jonathan's terrified of the blindfold (claustrophobia) and he's going last for his team! But once it's off, Obi-Wan has a smile on his face as he's cooking! I loved Rick saying "watch this - watch him!" Jonathan took his time figuring out what the other 3 had done and then began to do his magic. But does the focus on him mean that Team Blue isn' t going to win?

And the QF winning team is.....Team 4-1/2 stars! Team Red received 4 stars....and Susur asked "why wasn't it 5 stars? Ugh.

Then - yet another catering Elimination Challenge...catering using a mobile kitchen, staying in the same teams for WEDDING WARS! Twelve hours over two days to prepare for 150 guests. AND each team must make a wedding cake. Holy CARP! LOL

[jackbauer]

Seems to me Moonen lucked out. He cooked seafood yet again, and not very good seafood either, according to the judges, yet got bailed out by his teammates. He didn't do an appetizer either, did he?

[dave_c]

When Chef Marcus (red team) stated that people were coming back for seconds. I knew the blue team won.

[Johnny L]

why is that?

[dave_c]

To me, that is how Bravo edits the show to misdirect the viewer. When a chef talks about doing well and having people come back for seconds and thirds, that chef usually ends up on the bottom.

That's my conspiracy theory. :-)

[Johnny L]

yeah I hate the editing of the show sometimes.

I'd wish they would release a director's cut on DVD and not try to paint artificial lights on the chefs sometimes.

[momjamin]

Bizarre editing at critic's table, or did I just miss something? Hardly any discussion with the Bride's Team -- and if I wasn't looking (which I almost wasn't), I would have just heard "congratulations, you're all winners, no one's going home," and thought all 8 of them were standing there.

[chompchomp]

You are totally right. I thought the challenges were super fun to watch as they are all so talented, but that was the *worst* editing of judges table. We didn't even see them award stars! I have to say, the editing of TCM2 has been tremendously sloppy...and I'm no expert!

[southernitalian]

It's very choppy and inconsistent editing. But what really bugs me is how they have to pretend to be mad at each other. Particularly Ludo. They show a million previews where it looks like someone is going to kill him but then when the show is on you can see how it was really just edited to look like that. It's obvious these guys are all great friends and respect one another. That's one of the things I enjoy. And yet Bravo thinks we're incapable of watching the show unless there's some fabricated drama. It's a waste of time that could be devoted to actual cooking.

[StheJ]

I don't know... The "I'm talking here" yelling segment, looked pretty authentic in the disliking of Ludo department to me.

[LindaWhit]

Except Rick Moonen has said that he and Ludo are friends and they respect each other's cooking. Perhaps a heat-of-the-moment comment with yet another interruption by Ludo?

[LindaWhit]

Wow - Team Blue has the bride, who likes French and Asian. And she's not fond of lamb, but Jody's asked to get 12 lamb shanks anyway, saying it's risky but she'll make lamb even the bride will like.

(ETA: Wait - what was SERVED said it was rack of lamb - and that's the picture shown to us - but I swear Jody called from the Restaurant Depot and asked those shopping at WF to get lamb shanks! OK, color me confoozled.)

AND Jody's making Bananas Foster as it's the bride's favorite dessert - and yet she's never made Bananas Foster before.

Team Red has the groom - a basic meat and potatoes man - and he wants carrot cake for the groom's cake. Susur goes crazy on his dessert table - 5 different desserts? Holy smokes - the man doesn't know when to say when! LOL

[LindaWhit]

And Jody seems to have hit a home run with the bride - she loved her appetizer, really liked the lamb, and LOVED the Bananas Foster. The Egyptian semolina cake seemed to be a disaster, however.

Rick didn't do well with his fish course, however. And Carmen's corn salsa - what was that supposed to go with? Anything?

And the BLUE TEAM wins! And Jody Adams wins the overall challenge...WTG!

As for the losing Red Team:

Tony - 13 stars
Susur - 16 stars
Carmen - 11 stars - Yup, she's going home
Marcus - 13-1/2 stars

And I guess I was talking to myself tonight. :-) ghg, I *miss* our TC posts while the show is airing! LOL

[goodhealthgourmet]

aww, i miss you too, Linda. it's just not the same! and you're right about the lamb - at Restaurant Depot they were shanks, but somehow morphed into a rack at the wedding.

that semolina cake was a mess - the presentation was embarrassing. Susur's croquembouche, on the other hand, was a masterpiece...and i thought his line about the hippies and carrot cake was pretty darned funny :)

OK, random question: was i seeing things, or did they actually show Rick Moonen using a *Slap Chop* at one point?

[Jwsel]

You saw that. I will no longer feel embarrassed to use my Slap Chop with pride.

[goodhealthgourmet]

LOL! i've never seen one up close, but after seeing that crazy Youtube video mash-up/remix that was going around this year i thought i recognized it.

[LindaWhit]

The semolina cake was seriously embarrassing. And everyone looking at it knew it. But that croquemboche was phenomenal! I was floored at all Susur did.

And I had forgotten about the Slap-Chop. I have one made by Zyliss - and rarely use it. But when you're prepping for 150 people, I guess it comes in handy! LOL